I was told that I wouldn't be liable to charges due to a car accident I had and that the third party would be liable, the guy on the phone did say that I was responsible for the payment of the courtesy car, but said to me that I should not worry as I would not have to pay at all and I would not end up paying, This accident happened last June and I've just received a letter stating that the third party hasn't paid and they have sent me a letter saying that they have instructed a solicitors firm called MTA to collect money from the third party insurer as they turned down the first offer from the company that provided me with the courtesy car. This was nearly a year ago, can they do this? I know I signed the contract, but at the same time I was told that I would not be pursued. Does this invalidate the written contract as I was bamboozled at the time I took out the car hire, I must stress that over the phone I said to the company that if there was any chance of me having to pay then I did not want the car, they said “no”, apparently this conversation was recorded, so I've been led to believe from the hire company.

Drive Assist have written to me stating that there was new damage caused to the car while it was on loan to me. All the damage they have listed as new was on the car when they gave it to me. When their driver delivered the car to me he even pointed out the damage and asked me to sign a hand held machine confirming the areas of damage, unfortunately I was not given any paperwork as proof. If you have to deal with this company I strongly recommend you ask for confirmation in writing of all damage before accepting the car, make sure they include everything (stains on seats, marks on wheels and bumpers etc).

have now emailed you directly

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Hi Compton

Im sorry but I can not find your profile? if you post a mob number I will call you if that makes things faster, and then I will give you my details

Smurff

Rest assured that the RAC are NOT your insurers. This is how drive assist etc keep getting away with what they do.
There are so many complaints about them, but many are 'hidden' behind names such as Tesco RAC kwik fit etc etc.

There are not many actual insurance companies, check you policy and NAME your insurance company and the agent
( that's the name where they say insurance arranged through ) It's only when these companies are named and shamed
that something will be done.

For instance l can factually state that six members of my family no longer shop at Marks and Spencer, that my factual
experience with Marks and spencer car insurance via they 'friends' ageas, has been publicised in as many mediums as
possible including a works magazine.

The response l have had is very supportive and has awakened many other motorists.

They feed off each and treat the customer as morons.

co co cameron our glorious leader ( co co as in clown ) has shown his attitude very clearly recently with
his speech at the business in the community .

Name and shame is very productive, they are only after money, so the more prospective customers you divert
the better. But to do that we have to name the insurers AND the brokers.

I am becoming increasingly concerned about my current 'engagement' with Drive Assist - re: uninsured losses and car hire provision from no-fault accident. My insurers are RAC!!

What is needed now is a name and shame web site, maybe 'Which?' could do it, that the public can send in the names of any car insurance provider that acts in the way that this blog has highlighted. From this tread, we can already list:

Barclays

Tesco

M&S

John Lewis

Sheila's Wheels

comparethemarket

BISL

Budget insurance

AGEAS

AXA

Now is the time to add your entry.

I had a similar experience last year.
A job that would have taken just two days ( Only because the paint would have to dry overnight ) and around £350, ( if the other driver had paid for it in cash as was their initial intent ), ended up costing an estimated £1,500 and resulted in my car being taken off the road for 14 days because of Drive Assists involvement.
I went through my insurance company ( Barclay's ) who's claim line is a direct number to Drive Assist. They told me that they would take care of it and that I would have to enter into a hire car agreement ( with an optional £4 daily charge for excess waiver ). Thinking that the job would only take a couple of days to complete I agreed.
The car was picked up and the hire car was delivered.
9 Days ( and £36 ) later I was contacted by the 'approved' Garage stating that the job had been given the go-ahead. My car was delivered back on the 14th day of the car hire, eventually costing me £56.
I honestly could not believe what had happened. I contacted Drive Assist to complain and after spending about 2 hours on the phone eventually they agreed to reimburse me the money I had paid in waivers.
I have done some investigation and Drive assist charge an average daily rate of £70 for car hire ( Charged to the other insurance company ). On my case alone they netted themselves a very tidy £980 ( +£56 I claimed back ) in car hire alone before any work was even carried out. This goes to show that their main concern is maximising their profits by delaying work. As luck would have it they never claimed that I caused any damage to the car ( This was probably due to the fact that I took photographs of the car while the man who came to pick up the car was there ) but otherwise they could have claimed ( as many people have found out on here ) another £400-£500 in 'made up' damages.

I know somebody else who this happened to. They tried to claim for a stain on the upholstery, and when he asked to inspect it, it turns out the car had already been hired back out!

As it stands I couldn't let it lie and have reported Barclay's and Drive Assist to the Financial Ombudsman service. They have informed me that because Drive Assist are not a regulated company they cannot investigate them.
However they are investigating Barclay's and holding them responsible for Drive Assists actions because they never informed their customers about the involvement of a third party company handling their claims line and ( no blame ) accidents. Considering their only defence is that I voluntarily entered into a hire car agreement ,I remain hopeful of a positive outcome ( However I won't hold my breath) .
I will keep you informed.

Hi, I've a similar problem, I've just received similar letter today from MTA solicitors informing me that they have been instructed by DA to recover credit hire charges from 3rd party on my behalf, surely a third party can't engage a solicitor on someone elses part without their prior consent. Isn't this illegal ?
As far as i was aware everything had been sorted (this was 7 mths ago) Just wondering how you dealt with it and what was the outcome? thanks

Drive Assist:

Ok here goes......

My car insurance is ................ I contacted Drive Assist asking them to collect the car, they agreed to collect while I was away, getting the keys from a relative.who would be at my house waiting for them.

A few weeks later I received an invoice of £400 but no explanation what it was for. Next £400 was debited from my direct debit card!!! Contacting the bank to find out where the £400 went, and discovering that it went to Drive Assist,.............. going to take 28 days before they get back to me. Is there anyway someone can get this company publish in the media to warn other people about their devious service?

How did they get your credit card details? It could be fraud if the insurance company gave it to them. If your debit card is a 'Visa' debit card, you can claim your money back in a similar way as you would with a credit card using the little known process called Visa Debit Chargeback, and, as the name suggests, is a procedure in which the banks will ‘charge back’ the value of the original transaction directly from the supplier’s bank, and pass this amount on to you.

All banks who issue Visa cards have only recently agreed to process chargeback requests, and there is still widespread confusion over what it is and how it works. Therefore if you meet a dead end in your discussions with bank staff, persist. The facility is there for you to take advantage of.

Invoking the chargeback procedure

If you suspect your card has been used fraudulently, if the goods and services you bought with your card are faulty or if they do not materialise, then you should contact the bank who has provided you with your Visa debit card within 120 days, requesting they initiate the chargeback process. It does not mean you will automatically and immediately get your money back. It will initially become a ‘dispute’ in which the claim will be fully investigated by both banks before any money is returned.

See http://whatconsumer.co.uk/visa-debit-chargeback/ for more details.

I hope this may help.

PS it may confuse readers that you have chosen 'Drive Assist' as your user name, it being the same as the company complained about.

Ok here goes......

My car insurance is with Sheila's Wheels and I think I found their quote on GoCompare when I was looking to renew my policy.

Last year (Oct) a driver hit behind my car while I was at stationary. I contacted my insurance to give details and they put me through to Drive Assist to make arrangements for a courtesy car while my own car being repaired (by Drive Assist as well).

When it was delivered, it was raining, and the driver invited me to sit in the car while he completed the paper work on his hand held electronic device. No mention of scuffs/chips/scratches to the car or consequences if the car is damage in my possession. Also I was not invited by the driver to inspect the car extermally. When I mentioned this to him he advised that there was no point because it was raining outside, so instead he pull up a diagram of the car were all the damages were located. He wasn't explaining clearly or fully, being puzzled and confused about what he was doing, the other driver waiting to take him back started to rush him by beeping the horn. Feeling under duress with the beeping, the driver pulled up the agreement on his device making me signed quickly.

Two weeks passed my car was still was not ready for collection and I discovered I had to go away on a business trip which was already booked before my accident happened. I contacted Drive Assist asking them to collect the car, they agreed to collect while I was away, getting the keys from a relative.who would be at my house waiting for them.

A few weeks later I received an invoice of £400 but no explanation what it was for. Next £400 was debited from my direct debit card!!! Contacting the bank to find out where the £400 went, and discovering that it went to Drive Assist, I called them to find out why, they said there were damages to the courtesy car.

I disputed this (driver collecting the car did not point out the damages to my relative) and requested evidence. They sent nothing other then a diagram of the car pinpointing the damages from the hand held electronic device the driver used and the damages were namely scuffs/dents, scratches....They also sent a breakdown of the cost of how it came to £400. The cost was originally at £800 but they crossed out 2 alleged damages writing "no charge" next to it, bringing the cost down to £400!!! ( and the repair to my car came to £900..... ..... )

Looking at the diagram closely , I noticed the new "alleged" damages were located so close to all the existing damages. and I know I did not damage the car so basically they were charging me £400 for their damages which they fail collect these points on their PDA before they delivered the car to me. The whole thing is making me enraged, and I am in a serious financial arrear because Im overdrawn. I have already sent a dispute letter asking them to reimbursed and refund my money , they are now investigating which is going to take 28 days before they get back to me. Is there anyway someone can get this company publish in the media to warn other people about their devious service?

Welcome to the British Motor Insurance Industry.

To answer your question, just put the words 'drive assist' into the search 'box'
on this forum page.............

I don't want to spoil your surprise !!!!!!!

But don't forget to NAME your insurance company and where you got your insurance.

After all, l bet it was they who introduced you to Drive Assist and charged you for their

'service'. Try and find the words Drive Assist on your policy !!!!!! they hide it behind those

wonderful expressions such as " our chosen partners", "our selected support".

Name and shame them, Marks and Spencers thrive off them as does comparethemarket

BISL and budget insurance.

I'm another complainant on this forum about Drive Assist, disputing of £400.00 charge they have taken from my debit card for alleged damages deemed to be by their experts (scuffs/scratches) to a courtesy car loaned to me during the period that my own car was being repaired (non fault accident). Has anyone dealt with a similar problem with them and what was the consequences? thanks

Hi Smurff,

Please please please email me as discussed late last year. Email address all over my profile.

Thanks

Compton